All Comments on 'An Innocent Question Ch. 03'

Another wimpy husband story-disappointing, no revenge. Gee, write one with a realistic ending one of these days.

Another well written tale.

Ohio I have read many of your stories and have enjoyed them, this one is no exception keep up the good work. The only problem I had was my computer went down and it took an extra day to read the third part of the story.

if we keep in mind WHO the author is... one that HEAVILY favors reconcilation... this ending was good.!!!

But looking at it another way I still have probems with this. Not major ones... Again WHY was the hubby the ONLY one in therapy? yes she did participate later on...

but we still do know WHY she had this sexual obession!!

I mean come on people... was that covered at ANY point by anyone in any of these three chapters?.... NO!!! Like I\ said before the wife is either 1) MENTALLY UNSTABLE which CAN be fixed or helped.... 2) or she has serious CHARACTER FLAW which again CAN be fixed or helped in some instances...

BUT since we dont know WHY the wife choose to fuck around she gets NO help... and we dont know what caused this... perhaps she is just evil? perhaps her mind was taken over by JUST PLAIN BOB or aliens!?!

The therapist said on Page 1

..." I see a strong marriage with a big problem, not a fundamentally troubled marriage..."

WTF??? anyone wishes to challenge that ?

or this one

...."And Ellen, I think you're going to have to be patient about it. Because right now I don't think Dan has any idea about how to let you in....

so its his fault that he is still stunned by her vile actions and betrayal?

and when the wife said this I burst out luaghing at how fucking good damn absurd this was.... I mean come on Ohio...

...."Think about the last time we had dinner downtown at "Chez Marcel". The food was fabulous, right? Well, as you ate your Veal Sorrentino, did you compare it to some other meal at some other restaurant, or did you just think, 'damn, this is really good veal'?"....

Ohio is great writer and a fabulous stry teller but as a author ....has serious problem with morals and reality. His stories are filled his classic examples of moral relativism ...

so the pain the betrayal the lies the humuilation the doubt from a cheating spouses is just like eating a good dinner? REALLY!!!?!?!?!?!?

ohio wrote it, i read it it sucked; give me a god damn break from more psycho-babble and guilt feelings in wronged husbands; i'm not saying they shouldn't reconcile, but why is it heaped on him to walk the whole way and not have her meet half-way

Many cheating stories that end with reconciliation do make the offended spouse out to be either a wimp or an ass. This story really addresses the feelings of hurt, mistrust and betrayal that are inevitable when a wife or husband cheat. They reconciliation is not forced and nor, in my opinion, does it make Dan into a wimp. Many of the (mostly anonymous) commentor’s seem to feel that an inability to forgive makes a guy a man. I can use the genders here because I don’t see the angry gripes and personal attacks in the comments on the stories where they husband cheats and the wife forgives. Some stories show characters that forgive because they can’t stand up for themselves and are willing to accept any behavior on the part of their spouse to try and keep them. They are the true wimps. Others like the ones in Ohio’s stories most certainly do stand up for themselves. None of them have ever accepted their spouse’s cheating and therefore I do not believe that any of them can be called wimps, at least not fairly. It is sad that so many people find it necessary to vilify a character that is willing to work through the pain to try and save what had been a good marriage/relationship. It is wrong to personally attack an author who presents such a story.

If you want to attack characters in the stories on Literotica, which the authors generously provide for free, then there are plenty of them who rape others, who blackmail people into having sex, who maliciously destroy peoples marriages and lives for you to attack.

I thought this was really well written, and since I am not predisposed to have a certain type of ending I was able to enjoy the fine writing.

The only part I had trouble with was her statement to Chris: "So while our day together will always be one of my sweetest memories, it will have to be our only time together."

That doesn't sound like a memory she will let go of and one that I suspect she would pull out once in a while and enjoy. I dodn't see any way that wouldn't come between them in some way, shape or form.

Good stoy, Thanks! DJ

The author showed quite vividly how devastating infidelity can be. The pain, the angst and the time necessary to heal, if that is even possible. In this case it was, albeit with a ton of effort.

I suspect you'll take a lot of shots for this, author, but your rational for reconciliation is valid. Adultery doesn't always end in divorce, marriages and relationships can be saved. It wasn't easy and it wasn't pleasant,but they found a way back from the brink. My thanks for a tale well

chris knew she was married and did nothing to stop this train wreck. even if she offered a man should not accept. I think he should pay somehow.

was actually amde by I... Harry in VA...

Blue88 and that other Anon poster.... the authors lack of REASON why the wife did this is a MAJOR issue.

Any poster who asks WHY she did this vile action is NOT personally attacking OHIO... Nor is asking the question the same thing as "kill the bitch" attitude.

As for this other rather stupid post who argues

..."None of them have (the hubbys in OHIO stories) ever accepted their spouse’s cheating and therefore I do not believe that any of them can be called wimps, at least not fairly. It is sad that so many people find it necessary to vilify a character that is willing to work through the pain to try and save what had been a good marriage/relationship...."

is well a cluless boob. MOST of the time things CANNOT be worked out when adultery is involved.

the ending. is anybody really surprised about the reconciliation?

its a well written story. i even like the reconciliation part. its a big mistake, but only happened one time and its not like its w/o its consequences. both have suffered, but in the end, the husband have decided to forgive but not entirely forget.

I get so tired of these pussies ripping on stories where the couple ends up together. Obviously not one of you has been in a true loving long term relationship. This couple had been together for 23 years and intended to be together for ever. Lets think about this guys options: 1)He kicks Chris ass - he ends up in jail 2)He gets a revenge fuck - first there isn't anyone else he wants and second the chances of a marage surviving would be almost nil. 3)He devorces her - With the love and hurt he felt, he would be miserable for the next 10 years - good plan. 4) He stays with her - they end up fixing the problems, he gets more better sex, he is with the the women he loves. Hmm lets think about these choices. Some one said stop the psycko babble and make it closer to real life. This is as really life as it gets and this "phycho babble" happens everyday. Battered wives stay with husbands that beat them, wives forgive a husband of cheating, couples get over terrible loss, but one husband forgives his wife and he is obviously a wimp. Then again, I am pretty sure the people making thos comments are the same ones beating their wives and cheating on them.

Can you imagine the conversation between Dan and Chris.'glad that my wife enjoyed getting fucked by you,but please don't do it again'After all to quote Ellen it's only like comparing meals at different restaurants.

I give the author 100 points for taking their time and energy to write and post this story. I award Zero points for the Whimp.

Dan "The Whimp" needs to be "Bitch Slapped". He's not man enough to rate having the shit beat out of him.

Most important, I'm not at all convinced she has any remorse. I love her flippant comment at end that she hadn't forgiven herself and would have to make it up with sex. It's all a big joke to her. He told her he never wanted to be in that bedroom again and they're still on the bed she used for Chris. In all this time it never occurred to her? She wants him to tell her how to make it up to him? Doesn't she think she has to put any effort into it? Do authors think guys are praying for their wives to cheat on them so they can pick from a Chinese menu of sex acts? All she can think about is what she will lose.

I know, somebody is going to argue she recognized how much he was hurt several times, like when he had lost all that weight. But it was never the focus of her thinking. It was what can I do to get us back together, not what can I do to ease his pain. That's vastly different focus. I guess both Dan and his therapist were too stupid to consider it. Lucky for Dan or he wouldn't get to take her back with no serious consequences to her, just him.

The food analogy was laughable. How about a 12-course dinner in the big city's most renowned restaurant with elegantly-dressed wait staff, plate that are there only to hold other plates, an intermezzo between courses topped off by a world famous dessert. Would you compare with that meal when you went to KFC for takeout? Damn right you would. Even when you were not eating, you might think about it now and then with great pleasure. That's how she's thinking about Chris. But Dan decided to ignore it because it's too painful to recognize the reality, not because he decided to give up the pain as a source of power over him (since we're going into subconscious motivation).

I believe that for a reconciliation to succeed, there must be true remorse. The offender must focus on their victim. What is his pain? What can we do to ease that? It should be the top priority. Until that is addressed, there is no value in doing something for me or us. I never saw her show that kind of concern. What did she do to earn his coming back? She said she was sorry. The rest was up to him. Without remorse and with practically no effort on her part, the reconcilation is sterile and unconvincing to me.

I have always been a faithfull spouse cause I never had the courage to try my fantasy out for real, but, thanks to this author I have a plan.

I'm going to have my fling, confess, be wicked sorry, pretend I undestand how my spouse feels, convince some shrink that I regret my cheating, set up my spouse to get verbally beat on for for not rolling right over and forgive me before the cum even settles, and wring my hands while I weep alot.

I'm getting aroused just thinking about it.

Constructively - Very well written as per usual. Sound introspection with the Dr. Boggle minimised at last.

I was soundly in your corner on the reconciliation until the party with Chris. You rubbed his and our nose in hubbies miraculaus beatitude of flailing himself into the perfectly knighted saint of male reconciliation. You just had to mention it. You couldn't not. Why? An ultimate pushed point? Why? What real purpose was served? What you painfully and carefully sold was lost in my opinion.

You couldn't have him say I'm not ready for that yet? How must a real woman feel about your / her miracle man without normal feelings / humanity who will shake hands with the fucker who knew he was fucking a married woman somewhat in an extended family situation in hubbies bed? Wifey could feel "this was easier than I thought". How can this not affect him? Is he human? Is he a real man? Who is this???

So author - why the final absurd almost male demeaning thrust? To what real purpose???

In my opinion, a lot of great work and time compromised by your intention to maximise the overkill of a how to. Without that boggle (without validity or sound purpose) - it would have been a well written acceptable reconciliation brought back from the ash heap. Jeez - you just had to push it didn't you. Why?

With Some Regard

PS - You are getting closer to real life although I still have this nagging feeling that you write these and your husband writes the others? Lets be clear - that I hope you continue to write and improve each time as you have to date as your efforts are appreciated. Closings are tougher than any other part aren't they?

I will give my worthless two cents of an opinion. I truly enjoyed the read; as usual you write a great story.

The plot followed through from the beginning to the end. As usual you did a fantastic job of developing your characters.

The only problem I had, your character development didn’t follow through with the plot development. It felt as though all three chapters were one story, but you were trying out three different couples to see which couple would be best suited for the story.

In other words, it felt like the same play, but with different actors in each chapter. Didn’t change the fact that I enjoyed the story, but I have had the same problem with several other popular stories.

When the character development has to change dramatically to make the plot work, then I lose touch with the originals. I remain a fan always.

to quote a very fine author's comment to another story:

"..., I simply cannot find the behavior of either of these characters plausible."

many others have explained why.

the comments would cover the spectrum. There are some absolutes in "Loving Wives" on Lit. If there is reconciliation, many commenters will be displeased. If the wife is unfaithful, commenters will demand a "reason" and then tell you the reason you give is a dog that "don't hunt". When will someone write a story where the reason the wife cheats on a hard-working, sensitive husband makes sense? My opinion is; it ain't going to happen. Humans do foolish and painful things to themselves and to the people they love. That is what these stories are about. That is the heart, the crux, and the basis of the "Loving Wives" category. If a reader wants to see a "good reason" to cheat on a loving spouse, it's probably best they take up golf or knitting. These stories are about bad judgment, no judgment, jealousy, anger, the full gamut of human emotions and fears. Enjoy the story for how it makes you feel SOMETHING! I was left annoyed that the wife will maintain to the end that sex with lover-boy would never be matched, let alone topped. That made a so-called happy ending impossible for me and many readers. A good story does not have to leave you happy, it just has to stir feelings and emotions. This was a good story, well written, and very much worth reading. I thank Ohio for his hard work, and thick skin.

Certainly the story is competently written (though the unadulterated raves leave me thinking that those who frequent Literotica need to read more quality prose), but, as is typical of Ohio's material, the husband is required to swallow/abandon pride and accept that his wife enjoyed sex more with another man.

Frankly, while a male might well learn to move past this kind of emasculating admission, a *man*---or, if you prefer, an alpha male---would not. The issue would *never* be truly resolved until the breathless, sated wife said (and, moreover, *meant*) something to the effect of, "My God ... I never felt ... MY GOD ... that was the best sex of my life!" Only then could Chris' ghost be fully, or even substantively, exorcised.

Whether or not the author, the readers or the dispensers of psycho-twaddle wish to concede this point, it is, on a fundamental, visceral level, the *right* of every spouse to be the best fuck the other has ever had. Being permitted to avoid that admission means Ellen still has it over on Dan; and even if neither ever consciously comes to that jarring, inescapably valid realization, it will affect the marriage to its detriment. And by not demanding that Ellen bust her philandering ass to make him number one again, Dan has allowed Chris, and her, the victory ... because the hard [pun intended] reality is that men *are* in competition, and this young stud has bitch-slapped his rival in but a single night.

Dan's saved his marriage, yes---at the cost of surrendering his testicles.

Considering that this theme constantly recurs in the author's erotica, one has to wonder whether this form of 'literary' expression is therapeutic, cathartic ... or simply pathetic.

"By their fruits thou shalt know them," after all ... and what we're getting from Ohio are husbands with raisins where their balls should be.

I thank you for your efforts. Story writing is not an easy task even if some seem to think it is. I realise the time you must have spent agonising as to how you would do this and fit in that without forgetting something else.

I have the problem, if one can call it that, of having a successful and long marriage. It’s hard sometimes to visualise and to gauge how people react in these situations. I do know many marriages survive traumas, as did the one in this story.

I asked the question once of a friend who is many years into his second marriage whether he still had thoughts of his first wife. He agreed he did. Will the wife in this story ever forget Chris? I doubt it. Should Dan go to the party? Yes, it’s just another healing process to go through. Did you please everyone? No, but can you ever.

My best regards

There is no way that the husband would accept to meet, shake hands or have polite conversation with the lover. The lover knew she was married. The wife shouldn't accept her husband meeting the past lover especially since things were finally going right with her and hubbie again.

However if you write a quick follow-up where the husband beats the living crap out of the guy, then I can see the logic of him agreeing to go to the party.

Loved it (obviously) even gave it a "5." Another fine addition to Ohio's Loving Wives stories. As with "House of Cards" and similar stories we get the following elememnts.

Suspicious husband discovers wife has cheated, or is cheating.

Husband either leaves for awhile or asks wife to leave (aka gives her the boot)

Husband strives to deal with and understand what has happened that lead to the adultery. This is often pursued through conversations with friends, professional help, or a combinatikon of the two. The key here is the husband clearly loves his wife and is very reluctant to pursue divorce, let alone a formal separation.

Meanwhile, the wife apologises profusely and often expresses varying degrees of remorsefulness. She asks to be forgiven and often intones "can't we get past this." She also strives to understand the why of her transgression. A key element here is how the author characterizes her infidelity as "it was just sex, I really love you" or "it was a huge mistake, I'm so ashamed at what I did."

I beleive that difference and how it's presented and handled is the tipping point of getting back together. It becomes the leverage as to whether or not we can accept the reconciliation to come.

In "House of Cards" I don't think that point was ever reached and I found the reconciliation lacking. I thought there was every liklihood that the wife would evenetually cheat again.

In "An Innocent Question" that point was reached and I found the reconciliation beleiveable.

I think Ohio does an excellent job of navigating the trecherous shoals of infildelity leading to a rescue of the marriage. I'm surprised that anyone really has a problem with that. Isn't that what both partners want in Ohio's story?

I might certainly join with a number of readers who see some of these husbands as a "little too saintly" but, in the end, Ohio pulls it off. Here we are left with an acceptable, and I beleive pausible, ending. Reconciliations are tough write (no doubt even tougher to pull off in real life!) But that's the goal you have to keep in mind. So i say...

WELL DONE OHIO.

This story was well written, but a lot of things did not compute, leaving me with a hollow feeling. For one thing, her conversation with Chris shows to me that she never "got" what was bothering Dan. She laughs and jokes with Chris about what a great day of sex they'd had. No real remorse on her part, only an understanding that she's not allowed to do it again. Then she tells Chris that he has nothing to be regretful about, it wasn't his fault. Bullshit. Last I checked, humans have free will. No matter how much a married woman comes onto a man, that man still has the power to say yes or say no. Chris disrespected their marriage. Then he comes over to her house, eager to do it again, and yet sounds all sorrowful that he hopes he wouldn't do anything to hurt their marriage. What did he think he was intending then, when he came over to the house?! The whole thing does not compute. If I were Dan and I heard an account of that conversation (as Dan supposedly later does), I would be hopping mad. It would validate all of his worries about what she's thinking regarding Chris. She just doesn't "get it." He WILL always have to compete unfavorably with her memories of Chris. In fact, she doesn't even think she should try to forget those memories.

Then you only have Dan in therapy, as if the only problem is with him. Sorry, the problem is equally with her. She needed therapy to better understand why she cheated in the first place and come to grips with her own issues. Note in therapy she says:

"Dan, you've told me that for months you fucked me up one wall and down the other, all the time imagining I was Bridget Zuzich! So what if I occasionally think about Chris?"

You see? You claim that she is empathetic, but she really has no clue. She still wants to fondly recall sex with Chris while having sex with her husband, and doesn't even see a problem with that.

I feel sorry for Dan at the end of this story. He thinks that he's solved the problem in his marriage, but he really hasn't. The fact that she'd ask him to go to a party where Chris will be and he's expecting to just shake Chris' hand and chat amicably with him seems completely insane to me. Sorry, Chris was not just a bump on a log. He had free will and knowingly slept with another man's wife. The fact that the woman was extremely horny and/or attractive at the time is no excuse. Do you think that would hold up in court? "But judge, it's not my fault. You have to understand she was hot and horny!" What a joke. Now Dan seems to have bought into the collective insanity that Chris had nothing to do with his wife's cheating and he needs to be amicable with him.

Sad. Disappointing. You add insult to injury with that party thing at the end, completing Dan's emasculation. I don't mind a good reconcillation story, but not like this. Ohio, you've done a lot better.

Good story. You did your job as an author in that you convinced me that Dan and Ellen could/should reconcile. It was a long road for them and there was a lot of pain. Thank you for spending the time and effort to write the story for our entertainment.

As good as the story was I do have couple of constructive criticisms.

The first is that her obsession and why it overpowered her was more or less glossed over. I know the answer is that we and she may never know the why, but a little more time of her coming to grips with how wrong it was and her exploring why she did it would have helped understand her character better.

The second is the sex scenes with Dan and Ellen. The ones you showed us seemed like Dan had notched up his sex ability in order to compete with Chris in bed. This is understandable and yes, Ellen found the sex with Dan to be fantastic. But, for this reader I would have had more sympathy and trust in her if you had added an additional sex scene where the sex between Dan and Ellen was just ordinary. And at the end of the scene, Ellen had thought something like this:

------- “As I lay there snuggled in Dan’s arms, I relished the joy and feeling of just plain good sex with my loving husband. It was not earth shattering, but it felt so good to be loved by the man I loved dearly. This was the sustaining kind of love that I almost lost due to my stupidity.”------

I am not that good with words but I hope you understand where I am coming from. And if she could figure some way to convey how she felt to her husband that would be helpful.

One last thing and this is just a personal foible for me. There is no way I could have any conversation with Chris at Emily’s party. And I would not want Chris talking with my wife either, there are just some things that are not forgiven. In fact, my wife and I would not go to the party.

but i think he needs to see if maybe he can talk crises wife gf or whatever into having a good romp with him to make it up ... hell why not ask cris to offer to lethim fuck his current squeeze.. afterall cris owes him big time ...hell maybe his significant other would enjoy getting back at cris ...and of course his wife cant say any thing as she had her fling ..so she owes him also ...just the one fuck ...i still wish they had split would have been more reasonable ...but i guess a wimp writes like a wimp

can't get over the fact that people are human and make mistakes. She admitted to it and was willing to do whatever it took to get back to what they had. And she paid for her mistake. As long as it's a one time thing, I can't see why people get so upset about a reconcilliation. It was a good story, Ohio, I enjoyed it.

Like most everyone that's made a comment I think you are a very good writer, But I just didn't think much of the story. If I were a husband of 23 years to a woman I truly loved I'd want desperately to forgive her and try to fix the marriage. I know you added his attraction to another woman to give him a way to excuse her, But it just doesnt work. He never did anything to take his attraction any where while she did. And nowhere is there a real explanation of why she was so out of her head with lust that she couldn't stop herself. How can I be sure it won't happen again when I don't know why it happened in the first place? How can I sleep with her in the same bed that she used with her lover as you had him doing? How can I make love to her when I know that I'm her second best lover? It makes it OK to me because she says she's not thinking of him at the moment we are making love? But she will at some point won't she.

One of the Anon comments had one of the funnest lines I've read in a while :)

perhaps she is just evil? perhaps her mind was taken over by JUST PLAIN BOB or aliens!?!

Please don't take offense at this, but this is the first of your stories that I just couldn't make myself finish. I stopped at Ellen's comment after she fell. I was just done.

I mean, I guess now that the itch was scratched she is in control now? But until she had sex she with Chris she was a raving lunitic without any control over her own body?

God, I wish my wife would let me use that as an excuse sometimes. That I was a beast that just had to have sex with the neighors or I'd go crazy.

I can see that conversation now: "You know Becky down the street honey? Yes her, she'll be 22 next month. Well I've seen her around an I was really curious how it would be to have sex with her so I finally did it. I mean she hot, don't get me wrong, but not hotter than you, just a different kind of hot. But I gotta tell you, the sex was incredible. No, not better than you, just different. Well, I guess I did have to convince her to meet me at a hotel for sex, but I swear I only had to talk to her about 20 minutes before she decided to have sex with me. But now that I'm done I've finally satified my curiousity. And I have to say that while I greatful for the experience I'm over her and now I'm ready to re-devote myself to you, and only you, and what ever it takes for me to help you to get past me having to satify my curiousity with her."

You don't see that conversation flying either huh?

Wonder why its ok for the wife in the story to do the exact same thing? I guess I've always wondered why the husbands have to be so forgiving after getting their self confidence and ego's crushed by a wife willing to do whatever it takes to have sex with another make, but the wives in the majority of the stories always manage to stay married, even though they were always having sex with other people, but the husbands are denied that?

I can answer why I didn't like it Daniellekitten, the wife knew it was wrong, she worked hard to pull off having sex with a younger man she fantasied about, I continued to see a lack of remorse in a character that kept referring to what she did as a "Mind blowing" experience to everyone that isn't her husband and willing to listen, and mistakes are what you do and is unintentional. I mean that's how the dictionary describes them. When you do it on purpose, then you really can't call it a mistake. Its called selfishness then, and this was a case of someone being selfish and wanting to escape the concenqueces of that action. Promising never to do it again is still someone trying to seek the out of those actions, not a sign of remorse.

I mean think about how empty prison would be if all it took to get out was an "I'm sorry" for any action that caused you to be put there.

But I guess for me I will always see that there is a lack of guilt or remorse for any character in a story where the wife keeps referring to her extra marital encounter as "'Mind blowing sex' that she'll always have sweet memories of".

For me that really doesn't speak "guilt" or "remorse". No, no, really it doesn't. I can see it now, with a smile on my face I'll say "I really regret that mind blowing sex with Becky only because you got hurt by it" to my wife and then she quickly pulls me into her arms and says "long as I feel that way I'll forgive you". Yep again I can see that flying with her, can't you?

And well, I guess the cure for having his wife cheat on him was she required him to wait on her because she was injured. Thats how they fixed it I guess. He had to see her naked and helpless to get back his manhood after all the mind blowing sex she experienced with a younger man.

Yep.

But sorry I don't really like it much. I tried I mean I really did, but once I got to page two I was really done.

Sorry.

-Risq

thank you,ohio,for another great story!

Hon your comment came up after I started writing mine so I didn't see it till after I was done. Let me try to explain.

A lot of us don't think of infidelity as a simple mistake. It's an act of betrayal by the person we care for and trust more then anyone else in the world. The person we've planed on sharing or have shared most of our life with. In order to do it they have to at some point put their lust ahead of the pain they could be causing to someone they said they loved. Getting over something like that isn't going to be easy and the steps to reconciliation in this story just didn't work. For numerous reasons commented on.

this story is just too silly; usually i like or dislike someone passionately; i care for neither Dan nor Ellen in this story,,,

the "honey," "dear," "beloved" lines are way too silly, in light of the fact that they are talking about fucking or thinking about fucking Chris, Bridgit and others,,,,

too fake to be enjoyable; again, i don't even feel one way or another for any of the characters; it's just a shrug of the shoulders as I glance rapidly through the paragraphs; nothing made me want to slow down and "find out" what's going on in their heads,,,

Ohio, you da man!

Your writing has improved a lot and your rendering of the therapy is better but the story was kind of over wrought. So much introspection by the guy. It felt tortured but not particularly real because people aren't that much in touch with their feelings. And if he were that able to be sensitive, the story wouldn't have taken such a long time coming to its conclusion. I suppose a really sensitive husband in such a story might be a nice touch but this one isn't really it.

Daniellekitten, even though Ohio convinced me that Dan and Ellen could/should reconcile, he only barely managed to convince me, so I understand where the others are coming from.

There were several places in the story where if Ohio had written Ellen’s response(s) with more apology and remorse, he could/would have won over a lot more readers to his view.

For instance when Dan asked Ellen after the aborted sex scene if she compared Dan to Chris; what does Ellen responded with but the restaurant analogy. Why could she have not responded with?

----- No Dan, I try not remember the sex I had with Chris, because it brings with it the bad memories of how I hurt you. -----

Simple and straight forward.

Juanwildone.... you made a GREAT great point here when you said

..."In "House of Cards" I don't think that point was ever reached and I found the reconciliation lacking. I thought there was every liklihood that the wife would evenetually cheat again.

In "An Innocent Question" that point was reached and I found the reconciliation beleiveable...."

KeEp in mind House of CardS (HOC) there was a 4 month affair where she fucked the other guy at least 2-3 times a week... or about 32-44 times... Inclusing her annivesary to the Man she TRULY loved!!!. The reason why that reconcilation FAILS to be been remotely believeable to anyone with a fucking brain is b/c wife says to the boyfriend (on tape no less!!!) 'My hubby comes first" but when the hubby gets suspcious.... she STILL continues to see the boyfriend

In this case it was ONE ime thing even though she clearly wanted to fuck Chris a lot more... yet the Hubbys reaction in this story was FAR greater far more intense and far MORE agonizing than the super wimp hubby in HOC .

DANIELLE KITTEN.... Mistake? if the wife actions were JUST a SIMPLE mistake then what if anything does the word BETRAYAL mean? Does that word mean ANYTHING to you?

Please tell us what is the difference between the two words?

recall the WIFES actins words anbd attitude IMMEDIATELY after the sex with Chris... she laughs and jokes with him... and says we cant do it again ... NOT becasue its wrong but b/c Hubby might get upset.

Then she says 'Hey I went after you Chris..."

This is NOT taking resposibility at all... she never thinsk about her hubby whatsoever. Its all about HER and her power...

MISTAKE?! COME ON....

The actors in the story had their flaws as did the story itself. But we have been given another glimpse into a marriage that hit an almost insurmountable bump in the road.

We are fortunate to have an author with the capabilities of ohio who has put a lot of effort into this offering. His stories are enjoyable to read and tend to generate more than their fair share of comments.

I hope that his next story is as thought provoking as this one.

I know this is going to get me in a world of trouble.... and some will view this as a personal atack... but it really isnt.... I do have a point here...

Like I said IF you consider the author this was a good story. But Please go back and read though the feedback posts and see how many other readers are picking up on the same thing as I have....

ONLY the men go into therapy in Ohio stories... the fact shwing p and soprt of pparticipating is ALWAYS the case with Ohio's stories.

The man alawys says "I wont sleep in that bed everagain" and in almost every OHIO story he does JUST that. This story was No different

The cheating wives dont have to explain their actions

As long as the man/ hubby gets his dick sucked he will be happy

from AnonymousCritic:

...."Most important, I'm not at all convinced she has any remorse. I love her flippant comment at end that she hadn't forgiven herself and would have to make it up with sex. It's all a big joke to her...".

and this ...

..." He told her he never wanted to be in that bedroom again and they're still on the bed she used for Chris. In all this time it never occurred to her? She wants him to tell her how to make it up to him? Doesn't she think she has to put any effort into it? Do authors think guys are praying for their wives to cheat on them so they can pick from a Chinese menu of sex acts? All she can think about is what she will lose..."

Appaently AC that is EXACTLY what Ohio thinks

as I said before "The food analogy was laughable...."

WHY would Ohio make such a pathetic argument?

another poster "To What Purpose??" wrote...

"I was soundly in your corner on the reconciliation until the party with Chris. You rubbed his and our nose in hubbies miraculaus beatitude of flailing himself into the perfectly knighted saint of male reconciliation. You just had to mention it. You couldn't not. Why? An ultimate pushed point? Why? What real purpose was served? What you painfully and carefully sold was lost in my opinion...."

classic OHIO Male bashing thats why!

...."You couldn't have him say I'm not ready for that yet? How must a real woman feel about your / her miracle man without normal feelings / humanity who will shake hands with the fucker who knew he was fucking a married woman somewhat in an extended family situation in hubbies bed? Wifey could feel "this was easier than I thought". How can this not affect him? Is he human? Is he a real man? Who is this???

So author - why the final absurd almost male demeaning thrust? To what real purpose???..."

Good questions!!! The answer is that either Ohio IS woman that hates all Man or perhaps is Gay and may be violently anti hetro Male..

In story after story Ohio comes up with these hardly believeable reconiliations that ends with the guy getting his nose rubbed in it by a woman that barely shows WHY ... or regrets or suffers any consequences

as the pooter Doesn't quite ring true, does it?... says

"but, as is typical of Ohio's material, the husband is required to swallow/abandon pride and accept that his wife enjoyed sex more with another man.

Dan's saved his marriage, yes---at the cost of surrendering his testicles."

and metzov Says

..."And nowhere is there a real explanation of WHYy she was out of her head with lust that she couldn't stop herself. How can WE be sure it won't happen again when I don't know why it happened in the first place? How can I sleep with her in the same bed that she used with her lover as you had him doing? How can I make love to her when I know that I'm her second best lover? ...."

What a fucking wimp!!! Go get your therapy like a good little wimp and kiss your "loving wife's" ass as she laughs at you. Then go to the party so everyone can see the gracious cockold, loser you really are. The only reason I'd went to the fucking party would be to kick Chris's nuts up his ass. Geez what a fucked up ending. The only reason you got a 25 and noy 00 was for the first two chapters.

I hate to give you such a low score, especially when there are many crap stories here that somehow score much higher, but I was honestly disappointed by this last chapter. As always, the technical quality of your story is strong, but I believe you are capable of much better work than this.

The biggest problem I have is not with reconciliation per se, but rather that Ellen just never came across as someone who was deserving of it. Dan seemed to be doing most of the work here, I just didn't feel like she was meeting him halfway. And while some readers felt that she communicated a genuine sense of remorse, the majority of your readers clearly were not convinced. While I'm sure that you intended Ellen to be deeply in love with Dan and truly devestated by what she had done, the fact that this many people did not buy into it shows that you failed to effectively convey your intent to your audience. Don't get me wrong, there will always be a small (but quite vocal) minority of "kill the cheating bitch" types, but when this many people (myself included) are telling you basically the same thing (Ellen shows no redeeming qualities, the husband doing all the heavy lifting here, etc.), I'm forced to say that your story comes up short.

I think Anonymous Critic made a great point, Ellen's focus was entirely on her being able to stay with Dan, and not on Dan's happiness. Those are two entirely different motives. The former is a selfish motivation, "How do I get Dan to not leave ME, to give ME another chance? The most important thing it that he stays with ME." The latter is selfless, "I love my HUSBAND and want HIM to be happy, regardless of whether HE'S with or without me."

Some things that might have helped the story include: not having Ellen fondly recalling the "great" sex with Chris; not having her make that stupid food comment (how can she compare food to her infidelity?); the part at the end where Dan is just going to party with Chris like nothing ever happened (that was really pushing it IMO); Ellen at least having the decency to buy a new bed instead of making Dan sleep in the same one she had so grossly betrayed their marriage in; making your conselor more neutral (perhaps this wasn't your intent, but he came off as very pro-wife); and in general a better choice of language when writing from Ellen's POV, she came across as more self-centered than sympathetic.

In closing, let me say I think you're a fine writer, but in this case I think you missed the mark. Hopefully you'll find some of these comments helpful to you, and good luck with your next story.

You don't convince me on them getting back together. If anything you've turned the man into a wimp:(.

Your writing continues to improve. I liked reading the comments almost as much as the story. No surprises here and that is not bad. The journey is as important as reaching the destination. If you continue to write in this genre, maybe you should vary the outcome; not to placate the critics, but because reconciliation is not always possible. Keep on exploring the interpersonal relations between loving and not so loving couples.

Boyd

The wife didnt seem worth it to me. Ive said it before and I have to say it again - you just didnt put in the work necessary to make the reconciliation palatable to me. Wife was unlikable and the whole marriage seemed too one-sided for the reconciliation to be about soul-mates, love and forgiveness. It seemed more like a wife who thinks she is too good for her husband and that entitles her to behave however she wants as long as she mouths a few pretty words about being sorry later. Husband lets her get away with it because he has the self-esteem of a slug. Worse than letting her walk all over him, he convinces himself that she loves and respects him by willfully ignorning the evidence.

Nothing wrong with reconciliation but you didnt set it up in the story proper by making the wife likable and/or telling us why the husband was so sure she loved him. His line about wanting to stay married more than she wanted to fuck Chris was basically the heart of the matter but then you tried to make it seem like they had a wonderful relationship of equals with mutual respect, trust and love.

It didnt really seem to me that the wife was too sorry for hurting her husband either. She cried a few crocidile tears about how she had devistated him etc but then went right back to diddling herself while she thought about her young stud. She spent a hell of a lot more time thinking about how great Chris was than worrying about what she did to the guy she claimed to love so deeply.

All in all, it seemed like the wife just recognized that she couldnt keep Chris long term (she was getting up there compared to him) and/or he didnt have the earning potential of her husband. That she wanted to stay with him didnt seem at all motivated by love or respect.

I used to think that you were trying to write about good marriages and loving spouses but just missing the mark a little. Several of your stories seem to feature pathetic men with no sense of self-worth and women who ruthlessly take advantage of them though so maybe thats what you were trying to write about all along and the characters are coming across as intended. If thats the case, you should make it clearer imo. Nothing wrong with writing about a marriage like that but you need to be clearer about. Either have the husband recognize and accept the marriage for what it is and stop deluding himself, or at least have the wifes thoughts reflect her contempt for the husband. That would avoid the confusion of having romantic words piled on top of such un-romantic actions.

Even though I found the disparity between words and actions rather confusing and sad, the story was still not bad as a study of how a guy can convince himself of almost anything if he is unwilling to accept the truth. Thanks for writing.

While everybody won't like the same thing, why are there so many 'never reconcile' people out there, guess they've never needed to be forgiven.

Of note, the real reconciliation came when she needed the husband, and he responded. She did get some recognition of what she caused him to go through, but maybe not enough. But still, it was a realistic story of 2 people who did love each other, and survived a real screw up by one.

Tell me, if the husband had cheated, should she have never given him a second chance, should she have made him squirm before he got back in her bed.

Not all of Ohio's stories are reconciliation, but if you can make it fit, why not?

What if he'd had a 1-time event with a young woman, concluding a fixation. Would his loving and faithful wife take him back? I think she either would throw him out or would make his life living hell and the relationship would never be loving again. But you may ultimately be correct, Ohio...my dad always said, "never understimate the power of a woman."

We got the reconciliation we all expected. And, I must say here that I think in this case there was room for reconciliation, but not necessarily under the circumstances ohio shoved at us.

I’ve resisted the temptation to read the other comments before writing mine, so if some are repeats – tough!

I have several real stumbling points with the story overall.

Firstly, the husband was the only one who suffered in this story. The wife was slightly peeved by some of his words and actions, but nothing ohio wrote gave me a sense that she suffered in any way.

Second, there seemed to me to be a definite attempt by ohio to have the husband seem unreasonable for not just “sucking it in”, unconditionally forgiving her and getting on with his life.

Next, ohio showed the woman as having no real clue what she did to her husband and she had not one shred of remorse for what she did with Chris. All she was sorry for (NOT remorseful or guilty) was Dan’s reaction. On the contrary, she was over the moon about what she and Chris did – never once expressed remorse or guilt over the action, just the result. Even when Chris visited the house and she managed to resist her urges (she admitted still having them!) she joked with him about how fantastic the sex was. She thinks all she did was make a silly mistake – SHIT! The only mistake she made in this story was missing the front step, falling and hitting her head, everything else she did was deliberate and calculated and in no way a ‘mistake’. Ellen tells Dan she doesn’t think about Chris, but she told Chris “….our day together will always be one of my sweetest memories,…” How is that remorse in any way?

And ohio made a big thing about Dan never wanting to be in the same bed she fucked Chris in, then left that thread to die somewhere. Why, author, make a big deal of something then not follow it through?

Then, even by the end of the story the fact she even considered meeting Chris again, and ridiculously expected Dan to do the same is the rock on which this story foundered. It was almost believable until then, but writers seem to always want to push the envelope that little bit further. Parts of the story were bordering on the edge of credibility, but this pushed the whole thing against a reef and it sunk without another whimper.

My ‘bullshit detector’ started to rumble a few times in this story, notably the rubbish about him fancying the other woman (Bridget?) many years before, but it went into overload with this absolute crap about them both seeing Chris.

What is Chris going to think? “Good, here’s that great fuck. Oh bugger she’s got her wimp with her.” A classic example of the author going for overkill, and all he killed was his story.

Without that last insult to my intelligence I could have bought the reconciliation.

This one comment was something I thought about but didn't think to add it. CK84 did it better than I would have:

I think Anonymous Critic made a great point, Ellen's focus was entirely on her being able to stay with Dan, and not on Dan's happiness. Those are two entirely different motives. The former is a selfish motivation, "How do I get Dan to not leave ME, to give ME another chance? The most important thing it that he stays with ME." The latter is selfless, "I love my HUSBAND and want HIM to be happy, regardless of whether HE'S with or without me."

________________________

That was something I picked up on as well.

When someone is with their husband and basicly dances away from talking about their affair, tries to be as vague as possible, and only worries about her husband "after" she gets to sleep with the man of her obsession, that never made her seem very sincere when she claimed remorse.

But when her husband "wasn't" around all she did was comment on the "Cosmic Sex" or "Mindblowing Sex" she and Chris had. She told everyone, including her husband, how great it was. Go back and read Chapter 2. In that Dan had left for 3 weeks and while he was gone she called her sister and when she talked to her sister she couldn't help but slip in how "Cosmic" the sex was, but she wasn't willing to give up her marriage for it. Thats not remorse. Thats someone who's comfortable in a lifestyle and doesn't want it to change.

But I have to agree there are too many folks that felt the wife wasn't sincere and was too selfish for her own good. And the husband was too weak willed to stand up for himself and feared living alone. That's really not reconcilation when they only do it so they don't have to live alone.

Oh well.

-Risq

...I told you so. I didn't even bother to waste time reading the final chapter, as I promised. I just read the comments. We all know that OhiO is going the route taken again ... such a pussy as a writer that the woman almost always simply "makes mistakes," and the man becomes psychologically unbalanced and willing to admit he was wrong because the wife slept with someone else. Yes, I said that correctly. OhiO just likes to piss off readers. That's the name of the game with OhiO, just as it is with the women characters in the stories OhiO writes.

I haven’t read any other comments so I’ll just give you my take as I didn’t want to be influenced by others remarks. I have a real problem with the so-called outcome of this well written story though I find the ending very slanted.

First with the kids coming home for Christmas, they go back to the marriage bed without any type of pain or thought by him. That would only seem possible if he had already forgiven the adultery and the story says he hasn’t. Very strange!

Next all the consoling is for him to get to where he can forgive her. This is not a process any therapist would use, it would be for him to deal with his pain and then what he needed to pull his life together. If it were to get him to forgive it would only be with both under therapy and she trying to find out why she had such strong desire for sex with this other man. She is under no type of therapy only sharing in his feelings not facing anything about her feelings or reasons. Face one fact, THINGS JUST DON’T HAPPEN, there are real reasons in ones mind that cause people to do what they do. This is not a free pass as to I don’t know why I did it. The actions must be explored to find out what can be done to understand what is behind the need. Is something missing, are they feeling old and must act, is there a hidden dislike of something in their life, whatever there is a reason.

This story has the wife doing nothing to understand her desires or what she did wrong. It is all about the husband having to forgive and she saying I don’t compare the sex or think about it to often. My god, this has to be the biggest bunch of junk as it makes the husband into the guilty party for not being able to handle his pain and anger and she can throw out the I’m not think of my young lover to often.

The comparing of sex acts doesn’t have to happen when having sex, but if the wife ever thinks about how great it was with lover boy then she is putting the husband second when she does.

For the first time I’m going to say something a little critical to Ohio, who I respect immensely, it’s like a story from a woman’s point of view that was the one wronged. This is really a trash the bastard husband. I don’t understand how he is to forgive and get his head straight and she just lays back and watches. This whole last chapter is of two people who think only the husband has to forgive and forget and all is well. Nothing the wife did is important, as maybe in time she’ll forget her great sex with lover boy.

People get married to people who will never give them the thrill of the first lover or some wild encounter in the past. This if different as they are now making a choice of a long-term love they want forever with this one person. The wife in this story has no idea what her future holds for her as she figures she won’t do it again as she doesn’t want to end her marriage, but her need to do it has not been even once explored and maybe to much for her to ignore one more time as she has no idea what dives those needs.

I’m disappointed with the shabby therapy portrayal and how this is a very bad example of a husband bending over and getting it in the end. This is one time if the wife were to continue to act as the character is written I would say get away as fast as you can till she gets real help or just keep moving on.

Sorry for the criticism Ohio as you are one of my favorite Authors

Thank you for the entertainment/

PT

Ohio's taking a lot more of a beating here then I think he deserves. He is a very good writer and I think a lot of the comments now aren't aimed at him so much as at the comments that don't seem to get what wasn't liked about the story.

In the end for me it all comes down to the story. Did I like it or not. Here we have a well written story by a good author that just didn't work for me.

I gave you a 25 because you posted this DUMB ENDING. So, she cheats on him, which nearly drives him crazy, then she is so sorry and wants to get back with him. Now he is going to put himself through the same thing by going to Emiley's Party for the second time? What a load of crap. He is just a cuckold, who deep down, doesn't care what his wife does. He is a very insecure man and should not be married to a bitch like her. I really don't think he cares what his wife does with other men as long as he get to fuck her. After they got back, he always fucked her and she fucked him. THEY NEVER MADE LOVE. Doesn't that give you an ideal to their relationship? Love and fucking are two different things.

He said he would be polite like a house boy at Emiley's party. He also said if he saw Chris, he would shake his hand and make polite conversation. If he were a man that wanted his wife, he would fight for her and not over her. Any red blooded male would kill the bastard that fucked his wife. I can see she has trained him quite well. I wonder what she will do next.

To the Author, if you wanted to write a story about humiliation, embarrassment, degradation, cheating, mind control and lord know what else, you have succeeded. I pity you.

This reads like a synopsis of your life, so we learn when a wife cheats the answer to all problems is her getting hit on the head and being helpless so he could feel like a man again?

You hit all the ghosts on the head of wondering about a woman in sex, but this is not a happy ending story. The husband is wimp scarred and the wife is miserable walking on egg shells.

Your grade: 50 on the first part. 25 on the second part and 00 on the third part. You might be a nice guy, but dude you failed! Grow some nuts and be a man like John Wayne in character and stop playing sensitive Billy Crystal....you think and talk too much in your stories.

told y'all it was a TRAIN WRECK coming.... S-DES story is far better

Guess I was right after Mr Bishop? you said to me in chapter 2 HARRY HARRY HARRY ...you ignornat fool ...

that my opinions are Just mine but that no one eles agree with them...

Lets see... I have asserted that OHIO is skilled writer and arguably IMO one of the best if not the best writer here. But OHIO has serious antvi male agenda...

I predicted

that ONLY he hubby would be in therapy

the real reason WHY the wife did what she did would never be touched

He would come back ...even after Loudly procliaming "I will never sleep in that bed again"...

some OTHER comments as more and more see what is Really going on here with OHIO's stories... are ALL of these people Ignorant fools as well?

PEGGYTWITTY

For the first time I’m going to say something a little critical to Ohio, who I respect immensely, it’s like a story from a woman’s point of view that was the one wronged. This is really a trash the bastard husband. I don’t understand how he is to forgive and get his head straight and she just lays back and watches. This whole last chapter is of two people who think ONLY the husband has to forgive and forget and all is well. Nothing the wife did is important, as maybe in time she’ll forget her great sex with lover boy.

I’m disappointed with the shabby therapy portrayal and how this is a very bad example of a husband bending over and getting it in the end

This is not a process any therapist would use, it would be for him to deal with his pain and then what he needed to pull his life together. If it were to get him to forgive it would only be with both under therapy and she trying to find out why she had such strong desire for sex with this other man.

avergae JOE

...."I used to think that you were trying to write about good marriages and loving spouses but just missing the mark a little. SEVERAL of your stories seem to feature pathetic men with no sense of self-worth and women who ruthlessly take advantage of them though so maybe thats what you were trying to write about all along and the characters are coming across as intended. If thats the case, you should make it clearer imo...."

KANGA

Second, there seemed to me to be a DEFINITE attempt by ohio to have the husband seem unreasonable for not just “sucking it in”, unconditionally forgiving her and getting on with his life.

And ohio made a big thing about Dan never wanting to be in the same bed she fucked Chris in, then left that thread to die somewhere. Why, author, make a big deal of something then not follow it through?

(it has to do with OHIO's agenda of male bashing)

Then, even by the end of the story the fact she even considered meeting Chris again, and ridiculously expected Dan to do the same is the rock on which this story foundered. It was almost believable until then, but writers seem to always want to push the envelope that little bit further. Parts of the story were bordering on the edge of credibility, but this pushed the whole thing against a reef and it sunk without another whimper.

Ohio, all you did was force the squares to fit into the circles.

We all know that the squares didn't fit.

Nice try though.

ANDY

I would have gone to the party,made polite conversation with Chris and broke his Jaw and then Divorced her.

Man, there is no satifying you folks. The comments are longer and more engrossing than the story! My take on the story is this:

Well written with believeable characters. But, again, as I said, the psycho-babble predominates the story. I donlt think any wife would have put up with his neurosis for as long as she did. I think the man would have realized that the marriage he know was fundementally over. And the worst thing is , he cut from the story just when it got good! I would have loved to see if Ohio would have really had Dan walk up, shake Chris' hand and make polite conversation. Now that would have placed it in the "fantasy" catagory!

I have to say I agree that Ohio forced square pegs into round hole. It was pretty contrived. But all stories here are! That is why they are stories!

My vote is that is was a good effort and pretty much what we expect from Ohio.

I don't think so. It was good, no, excellent writing by an excellent author but, but, but, whomever the originator of the term of "phycobabble was", I take my hat off to you. That was a very good description of his behavior toward his wife. She did wrong. He went for therapy. This was as out of character as could ever be imagined rationally. Kind of like you having a car wreck running a red light and sending the driver of the car you ran into, to driver training school. I knew there would be reconciliation by Dan pretty much giving her a pass, but after the long meeting between Ellen and Chris when they just talked and drank coffee after they had both fucked, sucked, and done everything imaginable with each other. That was total bullshit IMHO. They would have locked the doors, tore off each others clothes and fucked within five minutes after he came in the front door or she would have said to him that her husband might be watching her and made a date to see him at a Dick Cheney type undisclosed location. That part of the story was the hardest (pardon the pun) to swallow. The only thing about this woman in the story with a redeeming quality to her at all was when she confessed to Dan her infidelity. Dan was pretty weak in that he was so used to his life and reasonably happy about his circumstances that he came home. To afraid to step out into the unknown and get on with his predictable life. Anyway she said her tits, pussy, and heart belonged to her husband until her itch needed scratched again.

I still say once a wife cheats, she will do it again when the conditions are right. One thing she did learn from all this though. Lie, Lie, and lie again about fucking around. It is much easier and the husband would have been none the wiser. She could have probably been a little more discreet and fucked Chris until he got out of graduate school and moved on. Hell, he might have given her a better deal financially too. Youth, wealth, and a hard cock for more years might have made her leave Dan for unknown parts

Ohio, this is your best work ever. I never thought you could surpass House of Cards, but you have. As for all of the numb-nuts who degrade your thought process in the ending, they aren't worth didly. This was your story, and you did a GREAT JOB.

Here is my take, for what it is worth. Couple deeply in love. She makes one stupid mistake, extremely serious but still just one stupid mistake. He has the impossible job of forgiving if not forgetting. He faces every monster, and overcomes all of them in the end. He had desire on his side, all because of his deep love for her. They both paid a heavy price, but that deep love won out in the end. As it should have, in my humble opinion.

Thanks again for a wonderful read...

Len Bee

I'm not sure why anybody bothers to write and post stories in this section on this site. If the author doesn't have the husband divorce, kill, murder, beat, extract revenge in kind or any other mayhem on his wife well then it's time to call the author all kinds of names and make disparaging remarks about his writing ablility. I'm not an author, just someone who likes to read so that for a while I can escape. If I were an author I'd really have to think twice about posting here and I'm not sure why some of them bother. Ohio, Thank you for your efforts. Adultry has killed many marriages, but some it does not. Until you walk in those shoes you'll never know how you'd react, you may think you know, but do you really? I personally like the fact that you as an author have presented us with a scenario that shows another facet of this problem, and done it quite well. Again, thank you very much for your efforts

First, great WRITING, but lousy part three- reason for 25 score.

I still say that the wife did not go through enough angst in the story. A few tears, a few hurt feeling when husband pulled away in bed, but no REAL emotional time, effort, and yes, pain, in her trying to PROVE to hubby that she was sorry, would not do it again, was remorseful, and was willing to do ANYTHING to get husband back.

She was ready to walk out because hubby was not ready to forgive her fast enough!

It was a seperation, maybe a trail seperation, but a seperation none the less when she left.

SHE LEFT HIM BECAUSE HE COULD NOT GET OVER HER SCREWING SOMEONE ELSE AS FAST AS SHE WANTED HIM TOO!! I know I'm repeating this point, but it's still too much for me. I'd have told her to keep walking!

She should have been willing to live with her husband for at least a year, working always to put things right. Instead she was ready to walk out on him. And I for one would have been checking up on her when she was away. No way would I trust her again this fast. Maybe it would show something in me, something petty, childish, but I'd be making sure she wasn't screwing around again. And I KNOW I'm not the only guy thinking the same thing!!

I like the stories you write, but on some you just plain loose me. And I'm not the 'kill the bitch-no getting back together' kind of guy. It's just that in this it was all the husband working, hurting, striving, straining, to put things back together.

AND I'D STILL HAVE BURNT THE BED, CHOPPED UP THE TABLE, SOLD THE HOUSE, AND KILLED THE MF THE NEXT TIME I SAW HIM! Notice I said kill him, not her. While it takes 2 to tango, I was raised in the fasion that you don't hit a woman. And notice I did not say LADY!

And no way IN HELL would there be going to a party, on purpose, where he would be at.

First, technically this is an excellent story, but that does not mean jack in my opinion. It is like a song with very beautiful words but the music really sucks. As Chagrined said, Ohio has delivered what we expected him to, i.e. the good and the bad.

There are some commenters that put down others and put out their own opinions as facts, such as Len Bee. If you want to put down others, make sure you say, "In my opinion, everybody else is a dumb piece of shit. IMHO, I am the only person in the world with any brain. IMO, Ohio is God, etc."

Hey, you the forgive-all holier-than-thou bunch, where are you in real life? I never come across one of you whom I can hurt even unintentionally and get forgiven.

Can anybody tell me that Ellen did not lie to her husband and did not build the continuity of her marriage on a lie?

Can anybody tell me that she regretted what she had done? Some people said it was a mistake. Usually when it is a mistake, you can say, "It was a mistake. I really _regret_ it." Can you say that Ellen thought that way or even said so in one of her lies?

And about the KFC take-out compared with the $1000 12-course dinner, would you think the KFC cashier would hate you if he knew that you think the $1000 dinner is better than the KFC meal? By all means, you can have as many $1000 dinners as your wallet can afford.

I think Dan was completely destroyed. He can never get his old marriage back. He can never get his self respect and happiness back. Compare his personality at the beginning of the story and the wet rag he became at the end. I think he should castrate himself so he would not compare himself with Chris. That is the only way. He is not far from that anyway.

As somebody pointed out, reconciliation is the better option to go. Why go through a painful divorce, live sadly alone or go to jail, etc.? That is completely true if you do not have any pride, self respect and honor to worry about, especially if your wife were the only woman in the world.

There is one thing I love about Ohio. He knows that the wife is not redeemable, so he does not waste any time there. To make the reconciliation possible, he just brings down the husband to her level even if in the husband's own screwed-up mind in a ridiculous way that no sane person would ever agree with.

I would not say Ellen and Dan deserve each other. I am sad for Dan. He was completely destroyed and turned into a pathetic piece of living being that needs a wife, any wife, to take care of. Her cheating rendered him incapable of thinking or living independently. He is now like a baby.

By the way, I do not give a damn if a story is believable if I do not like it. There are too many people that I do not like to know about. The fact that they exist does not imply I would enjoy reading about their life stories.

I really appreciate the author's allowing us this forum.

I think the thought process of reconciliation is described very well. Dan definitely had a lot of hurt and had a long way to go to get past it. I can't say get over it, just get past it. I doubt that he'll ever get over it. It will haunt his mind forever. But he can all but forget it.

It was interesting that Dan started going to the counselor right away without prodding from anyone. I'm sure he just wanted to forget; mke it all go away but it also started hs healing from the trauma.

I am not sure I could calmly talk to anyone that I knew fucked my wife. I'd be far more interested in kicking his ass. ANY man should respect the value of a wedding ring. If he can't, he should expect a butt kicking or as much as a .357 introduction. I'm a little surprised that the idea never entered Dan's mind. Revenge, the reclaiming of your "property", is very important to ones self importance.

I guess if the man is satisfied why knock it!?!

Very good read. Smooth writing and good editing.

Ohio in Japanese means "Good Morning". Anything there?

Great story!

Too long for me and I still read it.

More than one part, and I still came back.

Not even my usual type of story to like, but I loved it.

Great job, I liked it very much.

Except some of the comments!

Dear Sir or Madam, will you read my book?

It took me years to write, will you take a look?

It's based on a novel by a man named Lear

And I need a job, so I want to be a paperback writer

Paperback writer---(Lennon/McCartney)

I mean, the Lit honchos HAD to have screwed up and didn't put this entire tale into the "Humor and Satire" section. There were a few of us that knew you were going to hang horns on this guy, but except for "Harry in VA", none of us knew it would be this bad. However, I do agree with one commentor who said this story topped "House of Cards". It did but in the wrong way. You are now the proud Father of TWO really bad yarns. Despite what your adoring public tells you, (and bear in mind, IMO, they are either bad writers themselves or geldings)reconciliation just did not fit. There were so many screw-ups, I would probably die of old age before I could possibly get around to all of them. Kanga was closet to my estimation, but what even she let slide to spare your feelings is this: Why didn't she just slam the door in Chris's face when he showed up at her doorstep? Also, that party invite? That was a test by the wife to see if she had truly gotten away with it. And keeping the bed? Plain and simple Ohio, this story stinks on dry ice. You have some success as a writer, but you reconciliation obssession has, IMO, stunted your growth as an author and makes Just Plain Bob look like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. At least his wimps are honest with themselves. If Chris was a bit older, say finished with school already, Wifey would have left numbnuts (or should I say NO nuts)and been in the wind.IMO, next to "Life's too short", and possibly, your own "House of Cards", this is the worst story on Literotica. Why? Because it had so much damn potential and you let you ovaries (at least, God I HOPE you're a woman)guide your pen (or keyboard).

Pretty good story, well written. There's one thing that doesn't seem right. It appears that Ellen has yet to be completely honest with Dan about the sex. He knows it was good, great even but she's still holding back. (Too bad Dan didn't have a old friend in the electronic surveillance business to loan him a load of voice activated recorders and motion sensitive cameras for the set-up meeting.) Would her knowing she's holding back cause problems? Or is it true that in this case what he doesn't know won't hurt him?

Do we really need to know WHY she cheated? Maybe there is no good reason, ever. However, what a cheater tells herself about why is often very interesting. In this case, "I was really attracted to him." is all there is. Enough?

Polite conversation? HA! Maybe in twenty years. Dan should insist on both missing the party. If that's impossible then Dan MUST cut Chris cold.

---------------

Oh.... Harry in VA: Saying "this isn't really" a personal attack doesn't make it so. That WAS a personal attack. Not the only one, of course, and none of them have any place here.

After reading some of the comments below, I had to go back to chapter one to see if this was the same story I thought it was. (Once you reach a certain age and are bombarded with a barrage of cheating wives stories, they all kinda merge into one gelatenous mess.)

Sure enough, this wife didn't have a long term affair. She didn't build an intricate framwork of lies. She didn't have multiple partners. She didn't screw her husband's best friend. She didn't have a pattern of 'working late'.

Mostly this wife was bowled over by an extreme sexual attraction to some young guy. She suffered extreme gulit for her indiscretion. Even though the attraction remained, she confessed to her husband shortly after the one-time fling, virtually assuring that either the the affair was over or the marriage was over.

So they've been married for 23 years. She has been loving and faithful for 365 x 23 days (you do the math). One day after the thousands of other days she goes into a one-time sexual frenzy. There is a portion of the Lit. readers who feel that what she did is an executable offense. No redemption is possible for this one-time screwup. 'Once a cheater, always a cheater', they say.

Is life that black and white? Is there no margain of error in a marriage? Does nothing qualify as sexual insanity? Apparantly not.

Ohio has written a scenario where I would think that a reasonable person could see a way for the husband to work his way through the one-time infidelity and come out the other side with his ego and his marriage intact. If wifey didn't learn her lesson from the anguish they both suffered this time from her screw-up, then yes, the marriage is probably over. But to throw those many thousands of happy days away over one day of bad decisions and craziness seems self-destructive to the extreme on the part of the husband.

One poster stated that his pride and honor demanded that divorce her. WTF!! How prideful must one be? Is there no room for error ever? Christ, what a pig-headed dolt that would take to throw away a lifetime of happiness and a secure future for a single error.

Although I personally have been totally faithful in my 30 years of marriage, from time to time I have met women who pushed every button I have. They just made me crazy with the thoughts I had about them. Love had nothing to do with it. I just wanted to fuck them! Had they returned my intense interest, I guess I would have fallen into the same trap as the wife in this story. Cause I sure would have gone for it.

On the other hand, had I gone for it and then confessed to my wife and the marriage went through the same bitter trial that the story's marriage suffered, I sure as hell wouldn't have screwed up a second time.

Ohio's story seems reasonable to me. The reconcilliation is reasonable to me. The suffering involved seems reasonable to me. The 'off with her head' crowd seem unreasonable to me.

That's all I have to say about that.

Actually, that seems to be a very good question. "She suffered extreme gulit for her indiscretion." When exactly did that happen? Was it before or after she was giggling with her sister about what amazing sex she had with this other man in her marital bed? "But to throw those many thousands of happy days away over one day of bad decisions and craziness seems self-destructive to the extreme on the part of the husband." I'm sorry, I was under the impression that it was the wife who pretty much threw the marriage away, not the husband.

What I (and most of the other critics of this story) have been trying to say is that Ohio did not do a credible job of establishing that Ellen was genuinely remorseful, and for that reason the reconciliation didn't work here. I understand that you (and several others) DO believe in her sincerity, and I respect your opinion. If it was only 5% or 10% of the readership who disagreed with your assesment, that's one thing. But when it's the majority of the readers saying it, that tells me that the author has failed to effectively communicate their intent. THAT is why I gave it a low score. And if you think I'm being hard on Ohio, it's only because I believe that he/she is very talented and capable of writing a better story. If this was just some crap story by some crap writer, I would have never bothered to vote or comment at all.

And before you assume that I hate all reconciliation, let me just point out that after reading the first 2 chapters of "Fool's Envy," I think that reconciliation is possible for that couple. The reason is that I'm finding the wife in that story to be far more sympathetic. Brain dead perhaps, but still sympathetic. In her case she simply let herself get duped into doing an incredibly stupid thing. At least she was motivated by a desire to do something memorable with her husband. Of course what she did there was beyond stupid and clearly a horrible thing, and I don't mean to suggest that her actions were okay, but at least I can sympathize with her motives. In THIS story however, I find that I am unable to sympathize with Ellen. Maybe she didn't have a long term affair, build an intricate framework of lies, etc., but when you get right down to it she never regretted the act. Sure, she regrets getting that Dan found out, maybe she even regrets that it hurt him, but the fact that she still looks fondly on the act itself raises a huge red flag here. How can that be justified?

One of the other things that really bothers me, and I know a few other have said this as well, is the fact that Dan ends up having to sleep in that same bed again. Can't she at least have the decency to throw it out? Especially after Dan had made a point of saying that he wouldn't sleep in it again, to just forget about that is an error on the part of the writer.

I believe that there was an environment for reconciliation. She did only once, she TOLD her husband,etc. I buy it. I just wonder if the author one day would consider writing a new end for House of Cards. In this one I don't think the end made justice to the husband, just made him take her back, despite what the wife did for 8 months, and how she did it, and she didn't stop even when he got suspicious. I look forward to head a better end for that story. Thanks for writing to us.

Anybody can cheat. It´s necessary only four conditions: vitality; fire in the right place; compulsion and adequate place. The history reveals these four conditions. Life don´t have great differences into this theme. Life is something incoherent. The story - well worked - too. "I love you and you is all I want for all my life" The story shows that is a great lie. Is not the brain the big boss, is a little hormone.

The only thing wrong with this story is that it breaks the cardinal rule of the "loving wife fantasy genre". The story and the two main characters are totally believable. The tendency in the fantasy is to focus on the extremes of behavior. The ridiculously irrational wife who cheats and the equally unattached, irrational response.

This story is about a couple who are deeply in love. Why do we know that about both husband and wife? The author tells us that from both of their lips. As the reader, I have no way to dispute that. Then something happens. It's an irrational moment, a once-in-a-lifetime mistake by the wife. Her guilt almost immediately gets the best of her and stays there. The rest of the story is the working out of this rather awkward crevice on an otherwise smooth landscape.

It wasn't a major affair. The wife didn't even think about humiliating her husband--she didn't even think of him and his feelings at all until the end of the story. Having lived through such a blip on the radar, I thought both characters were well drawn and believable. Dan's response to his wife's infidelity--and her claims of guilt afterwards--were 100% on target. I may not be as good a judge about Ellen's, but from what I saw, she seemed to have reacted about right.

The obsession of some that EVERY case of cheating should result in divorce fails to treat each couple's situation as unique. It also devalues the institution of marriage just as much as does the cheating spouse. Some couples can and ought to save what had been and might continue to be a good marriage. Some couples should recognize their mistakes and move on. To put every couple in one or the other camp is just wrong. In this couple's case, I did believe that the marriage could and should be salvaged. The author did a good job.

Ok, I do have one complaint. I found it hard to swallow the idea that Dan and Ellen were going to schmooze with Chris. I can't believe either would feel comfortable with that unless they were on psychotropic drugs. Everyone in the place should have been able to cut the tension between the three of them with a knife. Better to just make an excuse, pass on the party, and move on.

As usually, it is an extremely well written story. It is also excellent for what it is: a gentle, realistic tale of a major obstacle in the life of a marriage. What is not is a wild sexual fantasy.

Ohio,

I think you have done a great job with this story and you captured very well the affects of an affair on a marriage. I really like the fact that you protrayed the Wife as taking awhile to fully get what she had done to her husband. The characters were well drawn and the outcome other than going to the party to see Chris was very realistic.

Got to think the husband would NOT want to be around him.

You have done well yet again.

I thought I was reading "The Da Vinci Code" as much contoversy that this story has generated. People it is fiction that's all. I know some of you found the premise unbelievable. Don't be so naive. I have no problem believing a woman would prefer sex with someone other than her husband. I know I have been there. As far as the revenge and retribution aspect that doesn't really happen most of the time. I'm an in the armed forces and have seen my share of broken relationships. Sone get mended most don't(90% divorce rate) but I enjoy the story regardless. Thank you Ohio for taking the time to write.

Loved the story and the reality of the situation created. THis could h appen to anyone at anytime. In this story this couple worked it out, how many didn't even try.

It is only 23 * 365.25 days if it happened on their 23rd anniversary. That I did not gather was the case. Anyway, I have to try to put this straight. When you have a long relationship, the longer the relationship, the more grave the error. So do you think if a friend of two weeks stabbed you in the back it is of the same gravity as if it were a friend of 30 years? Obviously not. Because of the length of time and amount of love, the shock and the pain are so much greater. In my opinion, they either cancel out or it gets worse by time. If you expect me to forgive you after 30 years together, remember that I expect you not to hurt me after that long time together. And do you think you can be guilty of a first degree murder only if you kill somebody by a nuclear bomb?

We all agree that this is fiction. Anything (physically possible) can be believable given the right amount of brains or lack thereof in the main characters, but that does not mean shit. The question I and many people are trying to address is whether it is _fair_. Nobody denies that murders exist, but we still resent them and think they are not fair.

It is not about cheating again either. How would you like it if you know that your wife is drooling and dying to fuck anything with a dick, but she is not doing it lest she would not lose you? It must be a very happy loving marriage.

I and many others think reconciliation is not fair for the husband. I realize though that the cheating broke the husband's backbone so he could not avoid the reconciliation. I think he should stay in a mental rehab faciltiy for a couple of years to get over what happened to him, but he is lucky, other people might have had a heart attack and died!

The super forgiving folks are missing (maybe deliberately) the fact that the wife has not regretted the so-called stupid mistake. Imagine that you had a fight with a friend of yours and he crushed your knee. He then apologized and you forave him, but you had to walk on a crutches all the rest of your life. How would you feel if you found out that he still thought (and told others) that it was very enjoyable to crush your knee to smithereens? If you want, you can assume that you have been best friends for the last 50 years, but tell me how would it feel?

Ohio is a great writer, but I still do not think he is God. He delivered exactly what he wanted (and we expected him) to deliver. We just reserve the right not to like it. Do not forget that this is _my_ opinion. If you do not like it, we are even; I do not like yours. And if you think I am a dumb idiot, we are still even; I so think about you.

I must say that this story was one of your best. I have no problem with reconciliation as long as it is credible. You did a great job in describing one couple climb from the abyss of divorce and martial hell. Dan and Ellen clearly loved each other so I can see a real couple getting back together.

Having said the above like Risq and others I have some problems with various aspects of the story.

First, I do not believe that Ellen "got it." In fact, after the first reference to her fling she breaks down and make her problem (i.e., sexual obsession with Chris) their problem. She knew that once Dan knew about her fucking Chris she would be able to resist Chris. But her conversation with her sister clearly conveyed her feelings that her encounter with Chris was just (mindblowing) sex. The burden for moving on with their lives was placed with Dan so he goes to therapy.

The idea that her acting like a female bitch in heat was a mistake is silly. If she had gotten drunk and Chris fucked her then that would be a mistake. Also, the statements that Chris is blameless during this situation are out of order. Is Chris some dog who sees a bitch in heat so he has no choice but to fuck her?

Ellen's reactions and statements boiled down to "when are you (Dan) going to get past this." Most wives would have been really pissed by Dan's "so called test" but she looks at him as to say "you pathetic fool." Once again her conversation with Chris revealed no concern that Dan may come home early and be upset as they joke like old friends.

A real test would have been 2-3 absence days on a business trip after their reconciliation. What person in their right mind will fuck a former lover when he or she is try to reconcil with their partner during a 2-3 hour period when he or she may come home early?

The ending involving Emily's party just made me sad. I can see the party talk going like this:

Dan: How are things going Chris? [Shakes hands with Chris]

Chris: Fine! How are you and Ellen doing? Have you gotten

over my little fling with Ellen? I did not want to

come between you and Ellen. It was just mindblowing

sex!

Dan: Sure! Now that Ellen has re-committed herself to our

marriage we are back to the normal.

Chris: Great! It is situations like this that make us

stronger. If there is anything I can do please let me

know! [Chris waves at Ellen. Ellen smiles at him and

waves back]

SleeplessinMD

I'm sorry you get banged up for the story. I don't always like reconcilliation but often do, but it seems that you are getting bashed by many for your words - I'm not one of them. I do think the she got off light but their story was believable and good writting. Please keep more coming. Thanks again.

Ohio has done a great job on this story. There are three concepts that are little explored here at Lit: incest as infidelity (H2Owader), the bond between a mother and her child ( theCelt – even if the husband is not the biological father) and the fact that moral relativism is common. Most of us have walked up to the line and had one foot in the air. In this story, Dan just didn’t pull the trigger but he sure can understand Ellen’s response to Chris. The only area Ohio missed was at the end. All contact between Chris and Ellen must be prevented.

The following is from www.marriagebuilders.com. I think Ohio must have read this this.

“One of the most remarkable discoveries of my career as a marriage counselor is that marriages can thrive after infidelity. I would never have guessed it, based on my own reactions.

“How can a spouse ever trust an unfaithful partner again? My answer is that the spouse should never have been trusted in the first place. I shouldn't be trusted by my wife, and I shouldn't trust her. The fact is that we are all wired for infidelity, and under certain conditions, we'll all do it. We can all fall in love with someone of the opposite sex if that person meets one of our emotional needs. The way to protect your marriage from something that has been common to men (and women) for thousands of years is to recognize the threat, and do something to prevent it from happening. With these measures in place, we end up trusting our spouses because an affair becomes almost impossible to achieve.

“The first reaction of most, after discovering a spouse's affair, is to end the marriage. Most people cannot imagine having a normal relationship after such violation of trust. The victimized spouse is usually in a state of shock. The first reaction is usually panic, but it's quickly followed by anger. Divorce and sometimes even murder are contemplated. But, remarkably, most affairs do not lead to divorce. After some time passes (usually about three weeks), most couples decide that they will try to pull together and save their marriage.

“Most victimized spouses intuitively understand that all contact with a lover must end for life. Permanent separation not only helps prevent a renewal of the affair, but it is also a crucial gesture of consideration to someone who has been through hell. What victimized spouse would ever want to know that his or her spouse is seeing or communicating with a former lover at work or in some other activity? In spite of career sacrifices, friendships, and issues relating to children's schooling, I am adamant in recommending that there be no contact with a former lover for life. For many, that means a move to another state. But to do otherwise fails to recognize the nature of addiction and its cure.”

Great story. Thanks Ohio.

Phil

From Ohio – We gotta stick together.

In this story the author sends the VICTIM to treatment; made HIM confess for his ‘wrongness’ - whatever it maybe (pride; insecurity…you can add to this list of his faults). At the same time we observe the offending wife being promoted to sainthood by suffering quietly from husband’s unreasonable resistance to her agreement to have him back. What’s going on here? Did she cheat or did he cheat? And people praise this story? Are you out of your minds? I have not read such an absurd story for a very very long time

No, the victim is not being further victimized and I don't see Ellen as being sanctified.

In a case like this, you need to look not at what the cheater did, but what their motivations were. Ellen's motivation--though foolish and self-destructive (not to forget how destructive they were to the sense of trust that bound the marriage together)--were not malevolent. She was not looking for a chance to cheat and did not try to humiliate her husband. As soon as she realized the consequences, the spell began to break.

Dan, however, was ONLY able to see the action and not the motivation--until he and the counselor were able to see the bigger picture. The truth was that Dan could easily have been in the exact place Ellen had been in. He chose not to act; Ellen gave in to temptation. That realization enabled Dan to see that Ellen's motivation was not as destructive as her actions. That meant there was still some ground on which they could rebuild a marriage.

I for one am not a believe in the All-American concept of disposability. Good things are worth saving at all cost. Good marriages can--and should--be cleaned up and not quickly disposed of as though they were a messy diaper. Ellen and Dan had a good marriage oncce. They can get it back. (But the party with Chris is a mamouth mistake!

Cobbler1023

That is the story as it was written. Cobbler's version is nice and would have been better but the author didnt write that version from what I can see.

The problem most people are having with the story isnt that they reconcilied, its that the author did a poor job on the story (unless he was going for what was written in the absurd post). The only one that seems to care about what her infidelity did to the relationhip is the husband. The wife is entirely too flipant about the whole thing for me to believe that she actual regrets hurting her husband.

As for the sinning in his mind thing, thats a total red herring and even if examined, makes the wife look worse. He had an offer on the table from the woman he fantasized about and is trying to use to rationalize his wifes actions away but he didnt take her up on it. The wife didnt go looking for it? Not sure how you got that since she chased Chris down and invinted him to come back and fuck her in the bed sbe shared with her husband when he (Chris) hadnt shown any interest at all in her. He sure as hell didnt offer her a good time when she decided to take him up on it like the husbands spurious memory woman did.

All most people who hated this chapter are saying is that the story would have been better with the type of ending Cobbler described. That the author didnt write it that way is fine as well since it is his story but he (author) wasnt clear about what he was going for. I have no idea if the wife hates her pathetic little cuck of an emasculated husband as much as her actions (and even more so, her lack of apparent concern over having hurt him) seem to indicate or if the author just screwed up several places in the story and it really was supposed to be about love, forgiveness and getting over foolish pride.

That the author was unclear about what he meant, means the story is bad from my perspective. We have a few phrases saying one thing (she loved him, was sorry she hurt him, yadda yadda yadda) and her actions, thoughts and conversations with others saying something else (that she was sorry she couldnt do it again with risking losing her meal ticket).

Trying is worth something but sugar coating things isnt going to help anyone, least of all the author. Nobody says he has to listen to what readers think but if he does want honest opinions, whats the point of telling him that the story was a literary marvel when it wasnt?

His bit about breaking all contact? The wwife invited this man BACK into the home she shared with her husband AND wanted him to go to a party at his Aunt's? What Counselor would green light THAT, Cobbler? Some of you are so full of it. I appreciate Ohio's efforts, but this was a bad story and the reconciliation at all costs crowd can't be honest enough to admit, thus denying Ohio constructive feedback.

Before modern chemistry there was Alchemy. The most it is known for is the efforts of the alchemists to synthesize gold from other elements, mostly from lead. None of the efforts succeeded of course, despite ceaseless efforts of said alchemists. I recruited this analogy in my effort to understand some of the repeated problems of this story and recent others by this author, which based on his early stories I hold in high regard.

As a whole what the Alchemists were missing was the scientific framework, or the understanding that by the experimental and observation method they can gain unknown knowledge from nature rather then from prescriptions beliefs or magic. In ANALOGOUS way and NOT in any way to be demeaning, I feel that there is an evidence of missing concepts in this story. Those missing concepts seem to lead (or mislead) OHIO away from realizing his potential despite his recent efforts. The three main concepts by order of importance are:

1. LACK OF INVESTIGATION OF UNDERLYING CAUSES TO BEHAVIOURS

It reflects in numerous comments of readers who to my belief feel that there are reasons and causes even if they do not immediately jump at us. The lack of curiosity to learn about those causes leads to both less plausible plots and characters.

2. First outshoot of the first missing concept is the Depiction of THERAPY. In this story it does not do justice – neither to therapists nor to OHIO. By most brands of therapy Family; Couples or Individual with different theoretical background and practical protocols, you would need to fully engage the wife in a case similar to the one presented here. If not as a sole client then it would be as a partner in a couple’s counseling and to the most part she would be treated individually to help her learn about her own underlying problems (see problem number 1). I can see the upcoming therapists writing in great zeal to inform me that they have been practicing in the last fifty years exactly like the therapist in the story, so in advance - my hat off to who ever does it, even if I have never heard of such methodology. To the Author I advise – other writers have successfully incorporated therapy in their stories. The difference - they just avoided inviting the readers to the therapy room. For the same reason we are not invited to the control room of pilots or to the operation rooms of surgeons. That is unless you are ready to shadow a practitioner for few months and read some serious books about theory and practice in therapy in the area you are writing in.

3. Second outshoot of the first missing concept is the WEAKNESS OF THE FEMALE CHARACTER while the husband gets quite a thorough exposure – probably gaining from the author’s keen insights and observations either to himself or to others the depiction of the wife remains mostly minimal and formulaic. She just wanted something very much and the rest of her psychological /mental make up is still mystery to us. Paradoxically, as OHIO improves his male characters - the relative shallowness of their counterparts females become more of a glaring contrast. IMO, you could stay with mostly male characters, or investigate your female characters – ask around; interview women or read relevant material.

Finally, again, what I write is not meant to offend hurt or demean the author. It’s an expression of my sincere concern to what I feel is becoming a futile direction of trying to synthesize cheaters into lovers with no manifested effort to study or understand them. Like Alchemy, you stay with lead (cheaters) - nothing that looks like gold.

Ohio, you know how to express the angst of a character who has been wronged. You know how to write a sex scene. You know how to marital express conflict. As a result, your stories always start off very strong. This story is not exception. However, by the middle of the story, it imploded, and in the end, they fail to make sense. You write well, but you cannot seem to compose a cogent and coherent story!

You want an example of how this type of story COULD have been done? Please read “What Do You Dream Of” by Frank Downey. That author took a couple with a similar problem and showed not only a perfect resolution, but also how and why that resolution was perfect for that couple. You seem to keep missing the ‘how’ and the why’.

I was exasperated by your tale of infidelity when you decided to abandon a third person narrative. I can understand detailing the perspectives of the husband and the wife, although I do not personally enjoy that style of storytelling. Then you added the ‘other man’s’ perspective and then the ‘marriage counselors’ perspective. Why wasn’t the sister-in-law given an opportunity to speak? That was meant to be sarcastic.

Do you not know that every time you added another party’s impression you have in effect elevated them to the same status as the two main characters? In essence, you diminished those characters by using this convoluted style. Furthermore, how did Chris’ perspective add to or advance the story? I also failed to get any insight from the thoughts of marriage counselor.

Was your story supposed to be a reflection of how the ‘intelligentsia’ deals with infidelity? I hope not. You give us a husband, so in love with his wife, that when he finds out that she has had an affair, he goes first to see a shrink and CRIES ON HIS COUCH. Here we have a mature man whose value system immediately directs him to speak with another man to determine the ‘right’ course of action. This is the response of a mid-forties rational adult male? I think not.

You have painted the picture of a wimp, a man so lacking in self-confidence that he even equates a brief infatuation with a younger co-worker with his wife’s lust and infidelity with a younger acquaintance.

I want the hours of my life back that I wasted reading this tripe.

i am very glad i found this story thru the postings...enjoyed it. respectfully fan in Texas naynay

Ohio:

She will always have wet panties over her love affair with Chris until Dan totally destroys him. He is horny for her and her skivvies are still wet for him, regardless of her protestations. If he has any balls at all he will take that MF to the mat and all but kill him until he begs for mercy.

She has to finally understand what a cheap piece of shit she was willing to settle for.

Old son: you've told a fine tale but there has to be a price paid somehow.

My final question is simply this; why is he fucking her on the bed of her paramour, that used to be his? NOT HAPPENING!

Thank You. Ronnie W.

The character is spineless and a door mat. He could save himself a lot of grief by just cutting his dick off. He has already lost his balls.

god i just hate these spineless wimp boys (they sure aren't men)people keep writing about, what a waste of bandwidth

This story was as close to a complete failure as one could find. There have been many comments about plot, development of characters, ending, etc. and I do not wish to spend any more time commenting on them.

I really re-read the story today, after several months since it was posted, to see if I still had the same reaction that I originally had. I do. The real problem with the story is that the entire plot (the conflict) hinges on a false, but very "au courant", view of what is right and wrong. That principle is referred to as "moral equivalency." Essentially, and simply, if means that there is no difference between one act or another in terms of being right or wrong, if the acts offset each other. In this case, she commits adultry and he was tempted to do so at some time in the past. They are both the same in terms of being wrong, the author implicitely writes. They offset each other in the determination of forgiveness or of finding fault.

The author, despite limp attemps to suggest marginal differences, reveals that he sees no difference between the act of committing adultry and the temptation to commit adultry. Everyone is tempted, at some time in their lives, to do something that is to their advantage even though it is wrong. But the difference between a "good" person and a "bad" person is that a "good" person resists the temptation. One cannot be held accountable for what he or she DID NOT do. What one DID NOT do does not offset what one DID do. The fallacy of the "moral equivalency" view should be self-evident. It is the opposite of what is required for a civilized society.

This story was based, for the most part, on the moral equivalency POV. It actually ruined the story, and, in my opinion, made it a complete failure.

Cheers!

I know lots of others had words of discouraged criticism and self righteous blather, but this story was perfect to me. Among the best on the entire Literotica site that I have read.

Of course, I realize that I identify with certain things in the story more than I have with other stories and perhaps more, or differently than other people here have identified with it.

So, ya dun good, Ohio. Thanks!

Regards,

-Pultoy

JUST ANOTHER WIMP AND SLUT/WHORE ohio reconcilliation horeshit psychobabble missive; not worth the effort to hit the delete key

I found reading this story entertaining. Then I read the many comments from readers and I was further entertained.

The story was the author's ideas. Well crafted, techincally superb. He developed the characters and the plot the way he chose, to suit him. And it ended the way he wanted it. Every reader did not have to like the author's choices, but they WERE the author's choices. Had the author changed it to please Reader A, then Reader B would be unhappy.

Come on, folks, live with it. Ohio wasn't out to preach how we should live our lives, or how we should tell others to live theirs. He was just trying to provide something that would be found, by some, to be entertaining and perhaps interesting. In that I think he succeeded, very well.

Superb writing, excellent characterizations and a credible look at overwhelming attraction as the cause for infidelty. The characters act realistically, not fantastically, and are thoroughly believable.

Whether you agree with the author's handling of their affairs or not, this is excellent fiction. This 100 is for you, ohio, because this might be the best "cheating wife" story on the site.

My thanks for a completely entertaining work of fiction.

I could not stop reading all of your story. saw a lot of my life in it.

you have a lot of talent. Keep writing!

she left her ass out of the list that belongs to him you left that out you said her breasts ,and her pussy ,and her heart,I stepped forward and gave him a big kiss. "These are yours—" pointing to my lips. "And these—" taking his hands and putting them on my breasts. "And this—" I held one of his hands in mine and slid it slowly, gently down inside my slacks, where he got the idea and cupped my pussy, making me tingle.

"And this." I moved his other hand, placing it right over my heart.you left the one major part out her ass wasnt in it.

Pat.

Atlanta,Ga

"I'm sorry, Chris. I would never lie and tell you I'm not incredibly tempted—and you wouldn't believe me anyway! "

She won't like to Chris but she won't tell the complete truth to her husband?

Where do I begin? A wife who cheats CAN NEVER BE HONEST AGAIN! And that's the end! And Chris needed a shot in the fucking head with a 2x4. A 2x4 with a nail in the end of it!!!

This is the most deeply disturbing , and horrifying story I’ve ever read. The fact that it is so well written only adds to the terror. It is embarrassing to witness the spineless wimp of a husband, who claims to be a man. I usually think it is wrong to blame the husband for being the victim of an adulterous wife, but it’s no surprise that this abysmal excuse for a man could keep a women. Of course she cheated on him, she has no respect for him, because there is nothing there for her to respect. Dan sounds like he is a big strong intelligent fellow, and a better than average lover, but he is no man, and as such; will never be able to keep a women. Of course Ellen feels bad for hurting Dan, most women feel bad for kicking a puppy, (or any other poor defenseless creature) in the future I’m sure she will be more discrete with her affairs so Dan’s feelings don’t get hurt again, forcing him to move out for awhile, get hysterical, and spend more time in therapy getting in touch with his inner wimp.

When Dan asked her are you mine all mine?and she says yes im all yours she says and puts his hand on her pussy where it is wet and her lips and her nipples well she missed her ass why isnt that his he needs to ask that question to his wife she is holding her ass for chris i bet.

Atlanta,Ga

She enjoyed the sex and not only found it exciting but enjoying. She misses the orgasms she has. What and why is she conprising about!!! Just to stay with her hubby7 she is willing to scarifice her plesauer... IT doesn't make sense.

But at the end of the day i do enjoy OHOI's fantasies and i think he is a good writer.